So-o-o--o-o: Cleveland. More specifically, Ohio City. This is the neighborhood right across the bridge from downtown on the West side. It's extremely ethnically diverse, and just slightly hip without being annoying like Coventry. I LOVE it. In fact, I love it so much that I want to move there. Not immediately or anything, but the next time. Before I retire to my tire house in Taos. (that is one of the most sonically lovely sentences ever, isn't it? retire to my tire house in Taos. Ohh.)
Anyway, our main purpose in visiting Ohio City was to go to the West Side Market. This link is to a whole slew of Flickr photo sets of the market, because I think that is the best way to really tell you about it. If you want to know the history and stuff you can look here. We arrived in the early afternoon and found a nice street parking spot(oh yeah...in Cleveland you get like 2 hours for a quarter on the meters. AND the meters take nickels and dimes. Love.) almost right in front. We entered the arcade entrance off of 25th street, and immediately I was overwhelmed. It's HUGE, and literally produce stands as far as the eye can see. Tons of people milling around, the vendors calling out specials and handing you samples. Of course, in Cleveland in February you aren't going to get much local, but there were some people selling organic stuff, and a couple vendors who had local banners and seem to be very invested in the local food game. We walked the whole length of the produce arcade, and then cut through into the main building. WOW. We happened to pick the door that led right into the smelly fish market, but beyond that was a falafel stand. And beyond that was the meat and bakery and cheese and coffee and spice and dairy and pierogie and pasta wonderland that is the heart of the market. I thought I was going to cry. There are over 120 vendors currently in the market, and I swear you could do all your food shopping there quite happily. I guess you might want to go elsewhere for grains, since I didnt really see any of that, but otherwise...it's all there. The first thing that caught my eye was a REAL APPLE FRITTER, the thing that I was desperately searching for last summer and never found. I guess it's an Ohio thing, because there were several vendors who had em. I did end up getting one, but not from the first vendor. We wandered a bit and were finally stopped by a meat stand with super thick smoked pork chops and canadian bacon and chorizo sausage. All processed by the people who were there selling it. I don't know when they have time to do it, actually, considering how the market is open every day...maybe there is a whole team of them. Anyway, we got a bunch of meat and then kept on going. I ended up getting some more meat later, in the form of corned beef, and some super incredibly delicious homemade saurkraut. This is the real german style deal, almost reddish and not as sour tasting as the stuff you get in the can. It's a whole different animal. Rebby got some smoked paprika and habenero powder for her arsenal, and we got a loaf of german rye bread. I managed to pass by the cheese and the coffee because I knew I still had a bunch at home, but it was hard. Also hard to pass by were the pierogies and homemade pastas, and all the little fancy decorated cakes and pastries. I did get my apple fritter though, and man oh man.....it's almost enough to make me want to move to Cleveland on its own!
We went back into the produce section with the intent of shopping this time, and we did a good job. Avocados, sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts, bananas, mangoes, blood oranges, raspberries, temple oranges...and more stuff. Like I said, none of it was particularly local or organic, but the chance to interact with the people who are selling you your food is a blessing too.
We finished up where we started, and set out to find the Great Lakes Brewing Company for lunch. I wasn't sure exactly where it was--just that it was pretty close--so we got in the car and drove around the block. Only to find that it was literally right behind where we were parked initially! Ha ha. This provided us with not only amusement but the chance to see an adorable little green cottage with a rose trellis in the front for sale on the side street one over from the brewery. Yes, we were dreaming about moving that instant. We drove all the way around the block and ended up parking back on 25th street. Ha ha. Walking around the block, we passed the cleveland film society offices. No kidding, they are right next door to the restaurant. It was a weird sort of karma moment, like "here's where you can shop, and here's where you can live, and here's where you can work." Ohio City was definitely developing a crush on us.
We got seated right away in the atrium room at the restaurant in the midst of a very diverse crowd of lunchers. The other thing about Ohio City is that it is a very gay friendly part of town, in addition to/despite/because of being ethnically diverse(I'm not sure how that equation goes, really. have to do more research) We got some delicious porters (my old standby Edmond Fitzgerald, and rebby got one that was a pub exclusive. super dark but I can't remember the name) and then I got a bratwurst and pierogie platter and she got an irish stew. They came with delicious whole grain fresh baked bread, and it was all super yummy. The menu talked alot about their dedication to local farmers and sustainable and environmental practices, and it made everything taste even better. I was so in love.
We finished our meals and then walked around the square just a little bit before getting back in the truck to hit the thrift stores. I was very excited to see the Flying Fig restaurant(that link does not take you to the restaurant's homepage because the intro has really loud porn-style music...but if you turn your speakers down first you should check out the menu!) It's a tiny little spot that I have read about countless times. Women chefs turning out fantastic food on a small scale...that is insipiring to me.
So, we got back to the truck and found the thrift store pretty easily...it was a place we had been to way back when we had our first vacation weekend in Ohio City. It seems to have gone downhill in a big way, but I did get a couple nice scarves and a pair of denim overall which I have been jonesin for. The day was starting to get a little blustery, but we decided to drive out Lorain Ave to try to find some of the other thrift stores. Who knows what happened (Cleveland is a grid city but I am not sure where the east and west numbers start....and also, the addresses I had did not have east and west indicated) but eventually we found ourselves on the way to Coventry. I have to say, at this point I feel about Coventry exactly how I feel about Walnut Street in Shadyside...it used to be WAY cooler than it is. It is becoming very yuppified and very big box-i-fied and losing most of it's grungy appeal. Record Revolution still has graffitti on the wall from Stiv Bators, though...and there's always Tommy's and Big Fun, the giant crammed from floor to ceiling kitchy toy store. I did get a few things there(which I can't disclose at this time) but we didn't go to Tommy's since we were still full from lunch. All in all Coventry was sort of a disappointment. It's probably better at night.
Sadly, since we were still full, we didnt stop at Cooper'stown. Sadder still, I was being a dork and misread the directions and we ended up driving all the way to Erie on the way home, turning the 2 hour trip into 4 hours. Still---a fantastic day. And a new daydream!
Anyway, our main purpose in visiting Ohio City was to go to the West Side Market. This link is to a whole slew of Flickr photo sets of the market, because I think that is the best way to really tell you about it. If you want to know the history and stuff you can look here. We arrived in the early afternoon and found a nice street parking spot(oh yeah...in Cleveland you get like 2 hours for a quarter on the meters. AND the meters take nickels and dimes. Love.) almost right in front. We entered the arcade entrance off of 25th street, and immediately I was overwhelmed. It's HUGE, and literally produce stands as far as the eye can see. Tons of people milling around, the vendors calling out specials and handing you samples. Of course, in Cleveland in February you aren't going to get much local, but there were some people selling organic stuff, and a couple vendors who had local banners and seem to be very invested in the local food game. We walked the whole length of the produce arcade, and then cut through into the main building. WOW. We happened to pick the door that led right into the smelly fish market, but beyond that was a falafel stand. And beyond that was the meat and bakery and cheese and coffee and spice and dairy and pierogie and pasta wonderland that is the heart of the market. I thought I was going to cry. There are over 120 vendors currently in the market, and I swear you could do all your food shopping there quite happily. I guess you might want to go elsewhere for grains, since I didnt really see any of that, but otherwise...it's all there. The first thing that caught my eye was a REAL APPLE FRITTER, the thing that I was desperately searching for last summer and never found. I guess it's an Ohio thing, because there were several vendors who had em. I did end up getting one, but not from the first vendor. We wandered a bit and were finally stopped by a meat stand with super thick smoked pork chops and canadian bacon and chorizo sausage. All processed by the people who were there selling it. I don't know when they have time to do it, actually, considering how the market is open every day...maybe there is a whole team of them. Anyway, we got a bunch of meat and then kept on going. I ended up getting some more meat later, in the form of corned beef, and some super incredibly delicious homemade saurkraut. This is the real german style deal, almost reddish and not as sour tasting as the stuff you get in the can. It's a whole different animal. Rebby got some smoked paprika and habenero powder for her arsenal, and we got a loaf of german rye bread. I managed to pass by the cheese and the coffee because I knew I still had a bunch at home, but it was hard. Also hard to pass by were the pierogies and homemade pastas, and all the little fancy decorated cakes and pastries. I did get my apple fritter though, and man oh man.....it's almost enough to make me want to move to Cleveland on its own!
We went back into the produce section with the intent of shopping this time, and we did a good job. Avocados, sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts, bananas, mangoes, blood oranges, raspberries, temple oranges...and more stuff. Like I said, none of it was particularly local or organic, but the chance to interact with the people who are selling you your food is a blessing too.
We finished up where we started, and set out to find the Great Lakes Brewing Company for lunch. I wasn't sure exactly where it was--just that it was pretty close--so we got in the car and drove around the block. Only to find that it was literally right behind where we were parked initially! Ha ha. This provided us with not only amusement but the chance to see an adorable little green cottage with a rose trellis in the front for sale on the side street one over from the brewery. Yes, we were dreaming about moving that instant. We drove all the way around the block and ended up parking back on 25th street. Ha ha. Walking around the block, we passed the cleveland film society offices. No kidding, they are right next door to the restaurant. It was a weird sort of karma moment, like "here's where you can shop, and here's where you can live, and here's where you can work." Ohio City was definitely developing a crush on us.
We got seated right away in the atrium room at the restaurant in the midst of a very diverse crowd of lunchers. The other thing about Ohio City is that it is a very gay friendly part of town, in addition to/despite/because of being ethnically diverse(I'm not sure how that equation goes, really. have to do more research) We got some delicious porters (my old standby Edmond Fitzgerald, and rebby got one that was a pub exclusive. super dark but I can't remember the name) and then I got a bratwurst and pierogie platter and she got an irish stew. They came with delicious whole grain fresh baked bread, and it was all super yummy. The menu talked alot about their dedication to local farmers and sustainable and environmental practices, and it made everything taste even better. I was so in love.
We finished our meals and then walked around the square just a little bit before getting back in the truck to hit the thrift stores. I was very excited to see the Flying Fig restaurant(that link does not take you to the restaurant's homepage because the intro has really loud porn-style music...but if you turn your speakers down first you should check out the menu!) It's a tiny little spot that I have read about countless times. Women chefs turning out fantastic food on a small scale...that is insipiring to me.
So, we got back to the truck and found the thrift store pretty easily...it was a place we had been to way back when we had our first vacation weekend in Ohio City. It seems to have gone downhill in a big way, but I did get a couple nice scarves and a pair of denim overall which I have been jonesin for. The day was starting to get a little blustery, but we decided to drive out Lorain Ave to try to find some of the other thrift stores. Who knows what happened (Cleveland is a grid city but I am not sure where the east and west numbers start....and also, the addresses I had did not have east and west indicated) but eventually we found ourselves on the way to Coventry. I have to say, at this point I feel about Coventry exactly how I feel about Walnut Street in Shadyside...it used to be WAY cooler than it is. It is becoming very yuppified and very big box-i-fied and losing most of it's grungy appeal. Record Revolution still has graffitti on the wall from Stiv Bators, though...and there's always Tommy's and Big Fun, the giant crammed from floor to ceiling kitchy toy store. I did get a few things there(which I can't disclose at this time) but we didn't go to Tommy's since we were still full from lunch. All in all Coventry was sort of a disappointment. It's probably better at night.
Sadly, since we were still full, we didnt stop at Cooper'stown. Sadder still, I was being a dork and misread the directions and we ended up driving all the way to Erie on the way home, turning the 2 hour trip into 4 hours. Still---a fantastic day. And a new daydream!
posted by sheryl at 12:53 PM
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